Nami's calls
by XaccemFlare
Summary: A call ripples in Vanitas's mind. His action will lead to the mystery shrouding his past in a seaside town.


**This story is dedicated to nicegal1 for the deviantart drawing that I based this story on. It is with her permission and artistic style that this story came to fruition. Also I wanted to honor winterxavenue and meathiel for their peer reviews. they caught most of my tense errors. Anyways, please enjoy the story.**

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**Nami's calls**

**Vanitas pov**

_Endless waves reaching the horizon_

_Awash the roar of the tide, one sound beckons me_

"Another dream of the sound," I mumbled from my parched mouth. The sun had yet to rise over my hometown of Neptis. I swung my legs to the ledge of my old yet comfortable bed. I lived above my master's blacksmith shop. Becoming his apprentice was less noticeable than being his adopted son. I had no recollections of my childhood or my birth parents. At the age of 7, I was found by the shore near Neptis where my master, Eraqus discovered my unconscious body. I could not remember how I got there from my stricken exhaustion. Master Eraqus, out of sympathy, took me in and taught me the ways of the blacksmith. I am grateful for his kindness, yet I don't feel anything beyond a sense of duty to return his generosity. I limited my interaction to others as much as possible. This was why I often traveled to a beaten down trail of a hidden cove. I could watch the ocean from this cove. The sea calms my thoughts and everything become clear and transparent.

I walked down the stairs to be greeted by master Eraqus. "Morning to you, Vanitas," he said. Yes, Vanitas is my name for all my memories would grant me.

"Greetings, Master" I said blankly. Master Eraqus began his early morning routine of purchasing ores from the mining merchant across town. He would be home about high noon then begin crafting until the late hours. In between, he would teach me how to refine the ores, meld them and reinforce it into weapons or trinkets. In a dream, I could project this image of pointed cross with a rigid heart shape on top. It stayed in my mind until I finally meld it into a hand bracelet held by silver chains.

This morning, I used my saved allowance to purchase a small sailboat for 40 gold pieces. I needed to enter the ocean domain, yet I could never understand why. The boat integrity didn't matter to me so long as it was a worthy vessel to get me into deeper waters. I opened up the mast and sat down by the stern. I guided the sailboat far from the port. It was already tiny at the horizon. Here, I could feel the sound resonating to my arrival. As if someone or something has been waiting here. My spatial moment doomed me as the wind changed it coursed and veered the boom to my head.

"**Cough…"**

I stared into the cloud-filled rosy pink sky. _How long was I out?_ I checked to see I was back at the hidden cove with my sailboat lassoed to a rock formation. "Anyone here?" I couldn't have been alive without help. "I just want to say thank-you, whoever you are." No sound but the ebbing tide. I left the sailboat at the cove. It will remain safe there until my return. I trekked back to the blacksmith with soaked clothing for my master to witness.

"By Neptune's wrath, where have you been my boy? I was ready to call for a search party." His overreaction was much appreciated. I gave him an apologetic bow for my disappearance.

"Forgive me, Master Eraqus. I ventured too far with my vessel and got swept away."A mere white lie to deny my near death.

"Mark my words, my son, these waters are well known as the mermaid cascade. Sailors have been sent to their doom from their siren's calls." I shrugged off my master's warning. Mermaids belong in the realm of Davy Jones' locker. The remainder of the night had me contemplating the events at sea.

_How did I survive from drowning? _

_Why did I wake up at the Cove? _

I needed to return to the sea again to find the answers. However, my master may forbid me from entering the marina. I needed an alibi for my departure.

_I'm in the sea again, but I'm not drowning. An image of a boy appears. He looks so sad and reaches out to me. I extend my hand out, but the distance is too far. The sound echoes in my ears. What is it trying to tell me?_

_Who are you?_

_"_WHO ARE Yo….." I cut myself off as I shouted inside my room. That dream was more vivid than before. Something is definitely calling me. I yearned to find out the truth or be driven mad by this call. Today, my master had me attend the shop. He seemed unfazed by last night. He waved a hand and departed.

Not long after my master absence, a customer arrived. "Vanitas…" that voice belonged to an acquaintance of mine since my arrival to Neptis. His name is Zack.

"Welcome to the blacksmith, Zack. Did you like the last trinket I crafted for your 16th mistress?" I enjoyed mocking his harem collection of vapid women. The last woman he was with still believed the world was flat and was too scared to enter a boat.

"Still as cold as ever. Can you ever smile towards your only friend in this port or perhaps world?" Zack pouted. I covered my mouth as a chuckle escaped. His word rang truth of my social life. I rarely spoke to anyone for they saw me strange since my coming. Some saw my amber eyes as an omen for a disaster to come. Others commented on my devilish blacken hair that look like knives and daggers.

Zack didn't. He saw my anomaly as a unique feature to this colony. Besides the mermaid rumor, this port isn't famous or popular for trading companies. He befriended me within the year of my stay at the blacksmith. I showed indifference towards him for six months while he badgered me for a friendship. "So, any business here you wish to conduct?" I kept a formality to any customer even to Zack.

"I'm your friend not some customer. Anyways, I have invitations to the governor's masquerade ball. Please say yes." He held my hands as if my respond dictated his life or death.

"Why me?" I stared at him.

He winked back, "because I have a double date and the twin sisters wouldn't go unless I had a handsome man with me." As I deduced from his little charade, he liked to call in favors. I was about ready to say no to him until I recognized the benefit from this.

"I'll accept under the condition that I can leave at any time." Harsh condition, but I rather not be stuck with some whiny child all evening.

"You strike a hard bargain. Fine, then." We shook hands and executed my infamous smirk. I got an alibi and he gets stuck with clean up. I picked out my clothing, while suitable for a gala such as this; I chose my clothing to be sea worthy: light beige full breeches, crimson red double-breasted waistcoat, and an ebony coat with cuffs. I gave my whereabouts to my master for the gala and informed him that I may spend all night out.

The plan was set. I showed up at Zack's resident. Two finely dressed female were waiting impatiently. One with navy blue hair moved to me. "Oouu, so you must be the infamous Vanitas. I'm Aqua, please to make your acquaintance". She gazed at my face, "your eyes do look like a sea of gold." I wasn't flattered about my bodily appearance.

The second female came to introduce herself as my evening partner, "I'm Olette." This one had fewer manners compare to Aqua and had already lifted her hand to my face. I lightly kiss the back of her gloved hand and played the role of a gentleman. Zack came out in attire similar to mine, but with a silver/ blue coloring scheme.

At the ball, I limited my time to mingle and just danced with Olette for a couple of music scores. I had enough of this aristocratic show fest. I silently made my escape to the exit. Zack would cover for my departure with some sudden family emergency. I drank some wine to wash out Olette's taste out of my mouth. Twenty minutes of moonlight walking and I arrived at my cove. The sky loomed ominously as if ready to strike. I heed no care and sailed off again. There was no sound this time. I kept searching in different direction, yet found nothing. My focus to this mysterious noise made me unaware of the worsen weather. The air chilled me as strong waves battered my small sailboat. I tried to reroute myself back to land. Instead, a monstrous twenty-five feet wave slammed into me. The wave splintered my boat apart. Once more, the ocean claimed my body to drag into the abyss. I tried to fight the current, but I lost my breath. I felt the cold slumber taking hold of me. My eyes went shut. Before my mind went blank, something held my back.

"Ka-Ka **cough..**"

This was getting annoying being swept by the sea. " **sniff… bwah sniff…"** I heard the sound of crying. Forcing my eyes out, I saw a young, half-naked blonde hair teenage boy crying on my leg while half of his body was submerged in water. The storm was over, no rain or cloud but the gleaming moonlight. I was back at the hidden cove again. My eyes felt deceived when I saw something bobbing up and down.

"Oh, I must be dreaming," I muttered and went for a closer inspecting. The boy looked up at me with such sad eyes. Those eyes held an azure blue glow, as magnificent as the ocean waters. His hand reached for my temple

_Vani… Can you hear my thoughts?_

I gasped from this mental voice. Was this the boy's voice. "Yes, I can hear you." I tried to speak to him with my voice. He shot up out of the water and into my grasp. Below the waist line was a turquoise streamlined scaled limb which I guess is pretty much his fins. He was still dripping tears, but looked relieved and happy.

_Thank the waves. I was so worried about you. I thought I had lost you again._

"I don't understand. Lost again… Who are you?" I was so bewildered by this whole situation.

_You still don't remember me? It's me, Ventus. You were my best friend and called me Ven when we were little kids._

I still don't know what this boy, Ventus, was talking about," you must be mistaken".

Ventus frowned, _I guess Neptune's effect hasn't fade yet. _He lifted his left arm that held the same pendant as the one I crafted from my dreams. "Impossible, how do you have my pendant?" I began getting pangs of pain in my head. Images of people were popping out but not showing clearly.

_I'll help you reclaim your memories._ The pendant glowed a red aura around me and I felt something unlock inside me.

****flashback****

_I'll showing you the memories of your past. Look below._

Ventus instructed me to look below; I saw images of my younger self being tossed at sea while strange men in tattered clothing rampaged a boat.

_Your parents were killed by pirates on that day. You were thrown into the sea to be killed. It was there, I came and saved you. You cried because of what happen so I promised to never leave you. We forged a friendship and you became my best friend. I brought you food from my people's storage den while you lived in this cove. Your favorite activity was to watch me jump in the air for food like the seals._

I couldn't believe this. These memories were finally coming back to me. Yet, why were they coming back now? "How come I couldn't remember anything until now?" I said.

_ That is because of Neptune. He learned that I was harboring you, a landwalker. As a law to protect our people: we were forbidden to contact any landwalker on the grounds of exile. Yet my case was special since I was but a child. They chose not to exile me, but to seal away your memories. That is how you came to that port town with no memories. Every day since then, I called out to you. I watched from a distance as you returned to our cove. You were so sad, and kept looking to the sea. I knew you were looking for me, but the laws forbade me from ever contacting you until my coming of age. _

"And when was that?"

_The nineteenth year is our kind coming of age. I turned nineteen yesterday and did what I could to contact you. I even rescued you when you fell into the sea in the boating accident._

"That was you?"

_Yes, the coming of age also mark when I could be exile from my people._

"You voluntarily excommunicated yourself?"

_Yes, I couldn't bear the pain from not being with you. To see but never seen, to hear but never heard. I was ready to lose all connections to my people just for you, Vani._

****end flashback****

As the memories subsided, I looked deeply at this merman. He gave up everything; his friends, his family and his life for a nobody. "Why do this for me? I'm not worth anything." I gazed away from Ventus. He lifted my chin up and smacked my lips against his. I felt a chill down my spine. His warm lips rubbed and mingled with mine. I let my tongue out to taste his rosy lips. They tasted salty, but a sweetness underneath it. Our mouths parted ways. A thin saliva thread formed from our departed kiss.

_You are my world, Vani. I give my life for you._

Ventus raised his arms up to me. I lifted him off the sea. His merman body shimmered from the moon's ray. I took my left hand underneath the mid portion of his fish tail and supported his back with my right hand. His tail flailed around like a dog's tail would when in a state of happiness. Ven's cheek rested against my neck, snuggling for warmth. Our brief moment of reunion was crashed from my thoughts of this relationship. I couldn't let others know about Ven. They could separate us or try to hunt down his race.

"Ven, we can-

"Ughhh..ahhh…." I heard Ven yelped in pain before I could speak my words. His whole tail was writhing in pain and it looked like crystals flaking off, floating up into the sky. His whole tail looked like it was disappearing. I kneel down to rest his body on the grassy floor.

"Ven, what's happening?" I could hear my desperation in my tone. With some effort, he touched my temple again and talked inside my head.

_This is what happens to a merperson when…_

I heard a voice talking now, "when they are exile and come onto land." Ventus was speaking with his mouth. Ven was as surprise to use his mouth as I was. Yet, I feared the consequences of being disowned by his kind.

"Are you… d-dying?" I cringed when I asked that. He shook his head and I hugged him in relief.

"To be exile is to no longer be a merperson." His tail fins dissipated the fishy webbing for pink stubby toes. I could see tracing of an ankle and knees forming from his discarded merman tail. "I am becoming like you, Vani." He smiled in pain from this ordeal. The transformation wasn't painless, yet he forced a smile to hide his discomfort. "Vani, we can finally be together". This time, I cried alongside him. He made one last echo like sound marking the death of his old life and the beginnings of our life together.

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A/N:

Please visit my friend nicegal1 tumblr and if you love her artwork as much as I have, follow her tumblr.

*extra note, I will be posting a lemon epilogue to this story the next day.


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